When Giants Ruled the Tournament

From Bob Kurland to Patrick Ewing traditional back-to-the-basket big men have played a pivotal role, towering over the low post—and their often helpless opponents. For years the center was the centerpiece, and no team could harbor championship hopes without a true titan blocking the basket on one end of the floor and scoring at will on the other

WILT CHAMBERLAIN, Kansas As a sophomore the 7-foot Chamberlain averaged 29.6 points in the regular season and then a tournament-high 30.3. Proclaiming that Chamberlain was "not going to give us the jitters" in the title game, North Carolina guard Tommy Kearns jumped center against Wilt, and the Tar Heels triple-teamed him. He still scored 23 points and had 14 rebounds, but North Carolina prevailed in triple overtime.

BILL WALTON, UCLA Walton dominated at both ends of the floor as a sophomore in '72 and again in '73, averaging tournament highs of 16.0 and 14.5 rebounds. His defense—along with his two-year Final Four points total (115)—brought the Bruins their eighth and ninth titles in 10 years, and his three-year tournament field goal percentage (68.6) remains a record.

LEW ALCINDOR, UCLA The only three-time most outstanding player, the 7' 2" Alcindor had the highest tournament scoring average (26.5) in '67, the highest rebounding average (16.0) in '69 and—despite opponents' best efforts to bait him—stayed out of foul trouble in three title games, which the Bruins won by an average of 19.3 points.

In a field loaded
with tall, talented front lines, at least half a dozen top contenders are
smaller teams that have offset their lack of stature with speed and
versatility—weapons they hope will cut the behemoths down to size

BILL RUSSELL, USF "We can stop him only by keeping the ball away from him," La Salle coach Ken Loeffler said of Russell before facing San Francisco in the '55 finals. Loeffler's plan failed; Russell grabbed 25 rebounds to key USF's 77--63 win. The next season he helped the Dons stretch its winning streak to 55 and repeat as champ.

BOB KURLAND, Oklahoma A&M The 7-footer LIFE magazine described as "balanced and coordinated in spite of his height" won titles for coach Henry Iba in 1945 and '46 and led the tournament in scoring (21.7 and 24.0 points per game, respectively) both years. Kurland was also one of the first to effectively use what LIFE called the "dunk shot."

BILL SPIVEY, Kentucky Spivey dominated the game in 1950-51, averaging 16.3 rebounds as the I Wildcats won Adolph Rupp his third championship. Had the 7-footer played as a senior, UK might have repeated. But Spivey was injured and later implicated in a point-shaving scandal.

KENT BENSON, Indiana A three-time All- America, 6' 11" Big Red anchored the Hoosiers' 32-0 1976 title squad, the last undefeated team in college basketball. He led IU in rebounding in the '76 Final Four and scored 25 points in the championship win over Michigan.

AKEEM OLAJUWON, Houston Phi Slamma Jamma lost the 1983 and '84 finals, but the Dream averaged tournament highs in rebounds both years and was the top scorer (20 points) in the '83 loss to N.C. State. Olajuwon was the last player from the losing side to be named MOP.

PATRICK EWING, Georgetown Ewing led the Hoyas to the title game in three of his four seasons. His team came up short in 1982 and '85, but in '84 the Hoya Destroya got the better of fellow 7-footer Olajuwon and Houston, winning the much-hyped matchup of All-America centers 84-75.

JERRY LUCAS, Ohio State After leading the Buckeyes to the championship—and winning MOP honors—in 1960, the 6' 8" Lucas followed up with sensational junior (24.9 points and 17.4 rebounds) and senior (21.8 and 17.8) seasons that both ended with title-game losses to rival Cincinnati.

FINAL FOUR MOST OUTSTANDING PLAYERS

Until the mid-80's, centers (IN BOLD) had an outsized impact on the Big Dance